5 Defining Moments: Patricio Freire

Patricio Freire has almost become synonymous with Bellator MMA thanks to his decade-long-and-still-going-strong relationship with the organization.

Freire will defend his undisputed 145-championship when he faces Emmanuel Sanchez in the featherweight grand prix semifinals, their five-round rematch headlining Bellator 255 on Friday at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. “Pitbull” defeated Sanchez by unanimous decision a little more than two years ago and enters the cage on a six-fight winning streak. The 33-year-old Brazilian last appeared at Bellator 252, where he knocked out Pedro Carvalho in the first round of their Nov. 12 tournament quarterfinal.

As Freire prepares for his rematch with Sanchez, a look at five of the moments that have helped define him as one of the greatest Bellator fighters of all-time:

1. Rousing Introduction

Freire made his promotional debut as an undefeated prospect at Bellator 15, where he toed the line against Will Romero in the Season 2 featherweight tournament quarterfinals on April 22, 2010 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. “Pitbull” barely broke a sweat, as he submitted Romero with an inverted heel hook 2:01 into the first round. Freire closed the distance with a flurry of punches, executed a double-leg takedown and zeroed in on the Canadian’s lower extremities. He fished first for a toe hold, then transitioned to the heel hook. Romero had two choices: tap or watch his knee explode. He chose the former. Freire went on to eliminate Wilson Reis in the tournament semifinals before winding up on the wrong side of a split decision against Joe Warren in the final. Nevertheless, Bellator had a rising star on its hands.

2. Speed Bump

Pat Curran retained his featherweight crown with a contentious split decision over Freire in a Bellator 85 showcase on Jan. 17, 2013 at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, California. All three cageside judges scored it 48-47: Michael Bell and Ron McCarthy for the champion, Gene LeBell for Freire. Curran’s stiff left jab was his weapon of choice and left the Brazilian challenger bloodied and swollen by fight’s end. Freire was the more active of the two men for vast stretches of the 25-minute battle—he wobbled his counterpart with a head kick in the third round and a counter right hook in the fifth—but his aggression came at a price, as he left openings through which Curran could attack up the middle. Jabs, two and three at a time, kept Freire off-balance and out of a comfortable rhythm. Curran mixed in nice counter punches and blows the body, ultimately forcing the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt to attempt takedowns in the fourth and fifth rounds. Both tries failed, and Curran resumed firing his punches and knees down the pike. They met again less than two years later, as Freire dethroned Curran in a five-round unanimous decision and emerged as a true promotional cornerstone.

3. Choke Job

Daniel Straus made one critical mistake and paid the steepest of penalties. Freire submitted his archrival—they had fought on three previous occasions—with an arm-in guillotine choke to reclaim the featherweight championship in the Bellator 178 headliner on April 21, 2017 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. Straus conceded defeat 37 seconds into Round 2. Freire leaned on leg and body kicks in the first round, held his own in the clinch and then made his move. Early in Round 2, Straus left his neck exposed in a brief moment of weakness. “Pitbull” bit down on the choke, pulled guard and coaxed the tapout to take a 3-1 lead in his head-to-head series with the American Top Team standout.

4. Rarified Air

Already in possession of the Bellator MMA featherweight crown, Freire added the promotion’s lightweight title to his collection when he unseated Michael Chandler with punches in the first round of their Bellator 221 main event on May 11, 2019 at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. Chandler met his anticlimactic end 61 seconds into Round 1. Despite the heated emotions—Chandler had twice defeated the Brazilian’s older brother, Patricky Freire—involved with the match, “Pitbull” remained disciplined and focused. He countered a Chandler jab with a perfectly placed right hook behind the ear that sent the onetime NCAA All-American wrestler to the canvas. Freire pounced and let more punches fly, forcing his rival to turtle in a kneeling position. Chandler absorbed several more blows to the side of the head and did not adequately respond in Rob Madrigal’s eyes, as the referee swooped in for the rescue. The vanquished champion’s protest was immediate but fell on deaf ears, as Freire joined the aforementioned Warren and Ryan Bader as the only fighters to capture Bellator championships in two weight classes.

5. Solving ‘The Spaniard’

The Bellator 228 co-headliner saw Freire outstrike and outmaneuver Juan Archuleta across five rounds, as he retained his 145-pound title with a unanimous decision in the opening round of the Bellator featherweight grand prix on Sept. 28, 2019 at The Forum in Inglewood, California. All three cageside judges scored it for Freire: 49-46, 50-45 and 49-46. Archuleta put up admirable resistance but found himself outgunned in virtually every phase of the fight. Freire countered effectively with both hands, handled the former King of the Cage champion in the clinch, drew blood with an elbow strike on the ground and threatened him repeatedly with guillotine chokes. The only real damage inflicted upon “Pitbull” resulted from an accidental headbutt in the fifth round, which sliced open a significant cut under his right eyebrow. Otherwise, the Brazilian was in control for virtually all of the 25 minutes. The setback was Archuleta’s first since March 28, 2015 and halted his 18-fight winning streak.